In industrial drying, ironing and folding machines belts are used that have the mission of displacing the garments over the heated drums or calendars and subsequently through the folding areas.
At the present time, these belts are formed in a non-woven material, made of felt or similar, and they have a plurality of holes, defined in the belt by stamping or punching techniques. The purpose of these holes is to allow the application of a suction or depression to the garments or fabrics to be ironed, assuring their retention on the transporting belts.
The ends of these belts are usually secured by means of some metallic staples, said belts adopting a closed configuration by way of a loop or endless band.
These belts have a drawback in their manufacture, consisting in the need to make holes in the fabric constituting the belt, either by stamping or by punching, an operation which substantially increases the final price of the belts.
From a functional point of view, these belts made of felt or similar have the drawback that in their normal use they are subjected to tension, to the heat released by the heated rollers of the drying-ironing machine and to humidity, which causes their progressive stretching or lengthening.
This lengthening brings about that the belts, on becoming slack, slip on the moving transport rollers and work deficiently, it being necessary to proceed to their replacement in a relatively short time.
Also, as the belts are formed by non-woven fabrics, it is habitual that they fray and are quickly damaged due to the friction, which increases their premature ageing and the possibility of breaking.